Today's News

The Brunswick County Teen Court Mock Trial team placed fourth in the 20th North Carolina Teen Court Association State Mock Trial Competition in April in Concord.

Student volunteers competed as attorneys, clerks, and bailiffs against twenty other counties from around the state. Brunswick County Teen Court students practiced their roles for three months prior to the state competition. Teen Court attorney mentors John Kelso and Nancy Adelis spent time mentoring, training, and prepping the students for the mock trial competition.

The Southport-Oak Island Area Chamber of Commerce holds a discussion on the opioid crisis in Brunswick County in April. Kathryn Lawler, Hypnosis By Professionals, organized and moderated the event for the chamber.

A total of 3,680 pounds of medication and 30,000 sharps were collected at April 28’s medication disposal event hosted by New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington at sites in Brunswick, New Hanover and Columbus counties, including NHRMC Brunswick Forest in Leland and Novant Health Brunswick Medical Center in Bolivia.

Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey announced that the 2018 statewide Operation Medicine Drop/Take Back event was the most successful medication take-back campaign held in North Carolina since coordinated take-back efforts began in 2010.

In total, a record 32,247 pounds of unused prescription medications were delivered to a state-approved incinerator to be destroyed May 2. The number of pills collected during this year’s event equals approximately 24.2 million dosage units.

Brunswick County Manager Ann Hardy will recommend at a budget workshop Thursday that county commissioners discontinue using county property taxes to supplement county volunteer fire departments.

“No decision has been made regarding supplemental county ad valorem funding for fire departments,” Hardy said, but she will make the recommendation because of some duplication of service areas and some very low call volumes for some fire departments receiving the supplements.

SHALLOTTE — Congressman David Rouzer visited Brunswick County on May 2, including a stop at The Brunswick Beacon to discuss issues facing the country and state.

Rouzer said the Agricultural Committee, of which he is a member, recently completed the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018, part of which will get people working and off food stamps while helping them avoid the “cliff,” or poverty threshold, for those who are promoted or take a second job that causes them to lose their benefits.

BOLIVIA — Brunswick County commissioners approved accelerating construction of a parking lot across Government Center Drive from the courthouse to replace parking that will be lost in the upcoming courthouse expansion.

Engineering director William Pinnix told commissioners May 7 the courthouse renovation design has begun but it will take about a year for construction to begin.

He proposed in the meantime the board approve building a new courthouse parking lot that will be open when courthouse staff members lose their parking spaces.